What that means is that some of the big hitting names that had been open to the Mariners as Seattle looks to rev up its offense are no longer there.

And it may mean that the Mariners’ options are narrowing. It could be that they still might make a run at Adrian Dunn for a lot of money or at Ken Griffey Jr. for a lot less. Bobby Abreu and Cliff Floyd and some others are out there, but Dunn and Griffey seem to be Seattle’s prime candidates

Of course, the Mariners could go after none of the above. They’d have to stretch the budget mightily to get the money to sign the 29-year-old Dunn – assuming they could convince him to come to the Northwest – and it might be tough to bring in Griffey, who at 39 isn’t trying to hit a financial home run in free agency.

Still, there is no indication that the Mariners are going for any of the big hitters still out there. Even Griffey, who wants to come to Seattle, hasn’t been pursued with much vigor by new general manager Jack Zduriencik, perhaps indicating that the Mariners aren’t interested in adding something that might pass for instant offense.